shute



3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

- J. 1V1. & L. M. SHUTE.

EXCAVATING APPARATUS.

Patented Deq. 18, 1883.

WlTN ESS ES u. vzrzns mlwulhn miwn Walhingthn. ac.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

J. M. 81,- .L. M. S HUTE. BXGAVATING APPARATUS.

Patented De0. 18,.1883.

INVENTORS WlTN ESSES:

a. PETERS. Phobulmgn au. Vin-mm ac.

(No Modl.) s Sheets-Sheet 3. J! M. 8v L. M. SHUTE. EXGAVATING APPARATUS.

No. 290,488; Patented D5018, 1883.

NlTE Sin-res JOSEPH M. SHUTE AND LORENZO M. SHUTE, OF PHILADELPHIA, PA.

EXCAVATING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 290,488, dated December 18, 1883.

Application filed March 31, 1883. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, JosErH M. Snore and LORENZO M. Snore, citizens of the United States, residing at Philadelphia, in the county excavating apparatus.

of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have jointly invented certain new and useful Improvements in Excavating Apparatus; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of our improved Fig. 2 is a plan View of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section. Fig. 4 is a vertical longitudinal section, and Fig. .5 a plan view of the rope supporting supplementary truck. Fig. 6 is a vertical longitudinal section of the upper portion of the rear end of the apparatus, with, two of the trucks in position. Figs. 7 and 8 are side views, and Fig. 9 a bottom view, of one of the buckets.

Our invention has reference to that method of excavating in which the excavated material, instead of being thrown up to one side of and then thrown back again into a trench or other excavation, is carried up and back and deposited at once in the part of the trench where filling is needed.

Our invention has reference to the apparatus whereby themethod or process is carried on; and our improvements consist in the peculiar construction and combinations of parts hereinafter fully set forth.

In carrying our invention into effect, we erect on the street or thoroughfare in which the trench is to be made, and in line with such proposed trench, a trestle-work or framing of timber, forming the support for arailway-t'rack laid thereon. On this track we place a number of cars, and to each car we attach a draft rope or cable. These draft ropes or cables are carried along to and are con nected with a main cable, which proceeds to the other end of the trestle or framing, passing over a pulley or roller there located, and extending to awinding-drum connected with an engine.

this drum is rotated in one direction, the cars will be drawn toward one end of the framing or railway, said cars, when the direction of rotation of the drum is reversed, being drawn .cavation.

hen v backward on the railway by another cable. A

last car at the starting end of the framing until said latch is lifted. The draft-rope of each car passes around pulleys located beneath such cars, buckets being hung on said pulleys. These buckets are designed to receive the excavated material, being lowered to the ground or into the trench for that purpose. Then filled, draft is applied to the main cable, and thence to the draw-ropes of said cars. This first raises the buckets by taking up the slack of the ropes, and,after such buckets are raised, automatically latches them on the cars, and causes them and said cars to be moved lengthwise of the trestle-work until they reach the upper or opposite end of the latter. Said buckets have self-opening or hinged bottoms, which are released and lowered by contact with stops on the frame-work, allowing the contents of said buckets to drop out. Said bottoms are counterbalanced by weights, and are provided with latches, so that as soon as the fasten, after which such buckets are returned to be filled again. An indicator with bell is provided to register and signal as each trip is made by the cars and buckets.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, A indicates a trestle-work or framing erected over the line of a proposed trench or other ex- Said trestle-work or framing consists, essentially, of the uprights B B, which arise from the basepieces G G, the latter having rollers c c, to facilitate the movement of the structure as the excavation proceeds. The structure,if desired,is made in beats or sections D D, which said beats or sections are rigidly 'and firmly secured to one another, to form a steady and substantial support for a railway and for the cars thereon. The uprights are suitably braced and stayed, as shown, and are placed in two ranks, so as to leave a clear opening lengthwise between them.

E E are timbers projecting inwardly from the uprights B B, and arranged to support a track, E E, (on which metal rails may be laid,) extending from one end of the trcstle-work to the other. The spacebetwecn the timbers or tracks E E is open and unobstructed.

I I I I show cars or trucks adapted to run on the tracks E E. To these cars are attached F5 buckets are emptied the bottoms close the frame of the truck.

draft-ropes i c i t, their opposite ends being spliced or connected at K, from which point extends a main cable, k, that passes over apulley or roller, lo, and winds upon a drum, 1, which is caused to revolve by an engine. Each of the ropes 13, c. ,passes beneath the car, to which it is fastened, and under a pulley, m, to the block of which is attached a bucket, M. When slack is allowed to a rope, its bucket is lowered. When such slack is taken up, the tub is raised. Each bucket has a bottom, an, hinged at W, an d provided with two counterbalance-weights, m whose gravity is sufficient to close said bottom when relieved by discharging its contents. Latches m are also provided, which look said bottoms when closed, and keep them locked until said latches are opened by contact with studs 11' b, projecting laterally from the timbers B B. Such contact occurs when said buckets are moved backwardlyto their respective discharging-points, as hereinafter explained.

N represents alatch consisting of two levers, n, with heads '11 at the forward or starting endof the trestle-work, which engages with the end car when it reaches that point. latch holds said car, sothat afterthe buckets are filled draft on the main cable will elevate said buckets by taking up the slack in the draft-ropesbefore starting the cars.

0 represents a. wire extending along the framing,and connected at one end with a spring stud or lever, O, and at the other end-with the hammer of aloell,O At every trip the car I meets and presses against the stud 0, cansing the bell to ring, thereby giving notice to the engineer'of the completion of the backward run. A dial-register, 1, is also connected with and actuated by the same means, so that a record of the number-of trips accomplished is thus made.

We do not deem it necessary to illustrate or particularly describe the detail mechanism of the dial-register and bell, as any of the wellknown eXpedients employed where a dial-register or bell is serviceable may be used.

On the track-timbers E E a car or truck, Q, is placed to support the draft-ropes and main cable, and to prevent sagging of said ropes and cable. This truck runs on rollers or wheels, and has a vertically-movin g clamp, Q, consisting of a cross-piece, q, below the sills or frame, and a vertical standard, q, connected thereto and passing through the frame. A spring, (1 normally tends to raise the clamp and bind the draft-ropes between the cross-piece q and A'lever or incline, gflis connected to this spring, as shown, so

- -that when truck Qreaches the end of the framing said lever will be depressed in passing under a cross-bar, W, on the frame, and thus compress the spring q", releasing the draft-ropes from the clamp, so they may be wound on a drum, and thus draw the train of cars clear up to the end of the frame A.

Depending from the truck Q are studs or pins q which pass down between the draftropes, so that when the cars are drawn back- This wardly by the cable said pins will be engaged by the splice K, thus drawing the truck from beneath the cross-bar, and permitting the clamp Q to again press the drait-ropes and bind the truck Q thereto, so as to cause said truck to travel with said ropes and prevent their saggmg.

Depending from each car is a device for hooking the buckets thereto. Said device consists of a rigid hanger, R, having a bent or flaring lower end, 1", and a pivoted curved latch, 1%, having a shouldered headJ'. The straps m of the pulleys on have each a crossbar, m, and when the buckets M and said pul leys are raised by draft 011 the cable and draftropes said cross-bars pass in between the hangers R and latches It and engage with the shouldered heads of the latter.

S represents a slide secured to the end of the rear car, above the head of the catch. WVhen the buckets areraised, the cross-bar m of the pulley m belonging to the rear car strikes and raises said catch, relieving said car from engagement therewith, and permitting the train of cars to be drawn along the track. When said cars return to their normal position, after the buckets have been dumped, the catch automatically re-engages with the endear, as be fore, and holds the train in position until said catch is again lifted, as described. One of the cars of thetrainpreferably the one next to the last or rear carhas a frame-piece or buffer, T, united to the body of the car through the medium of an elliptical spring, 25. WVhen the cars return to normal position, this buffer meets a rigid block, t, attached to the frame of the structure, (see Fig. 6,) so that said spring is compressed and the buffer T moved toward the body of the car, or the latter moved toward the buffer.

U represents a bar or connecting-rod sccured to and operated by buffer T, to which the upper ends of the latches R are attached, whereby a longitudinal motion of said rod in one direction will cause said latches to swing away from the hangers R, releasing the buckets, an opposite motion of said rod moving the said latches toward the said hangers. When the'cars return, as just suggested, and the spring 15 is compressed, a longitudinal motion is communicated to the rod U, causing the latches R to swing away from the hangers R, thus releasing the buckets and allowing them to descend into the excavation where they are to be filled. The buckets thus are all lowered simultaneouslyto be filled,'and it is desired that they should also be dumped simultaneously. We prefer, also, that the dump should occur on the backward rather than on the forward motion of the cars, and to this end the forward sides of the bucket-latches and the rear sides of the stops on the framing are rounded, their opposite side being straight. On the forward motion of the cars the buckets will swing without opening in passing the stops, while on the backward motion their latches will open, releasing their bottoms,

which drop down, discharging their contents. As soon as the dump is accomplished the countor-balances raise the bottoms of the buckets and automatically relatch them, the latches sliding up over the inclines of the keepers and catching on the shoulders. The cars then continue their backward motion to the point from which they first started. When they reach this point, a hanger on one of the cars strikes a pivoted bell-lever, producing draft on abellwire, and causing a bell or gong to be struck, thus notifying the engineer, who thereupon suspends draft on the cable. The buckets or tubs then, in the manner already described, are automatically unlatched, and by their gravity descend into the trench, where they are filled. As soon as filled notice is sent to the engineer by a pull on the bell-wire, whereupon the engine is again started and the buckets lifted as before.

The operation is substantially as follows: The buckets, being lowered into the trench or excavation, are then filled. A signal being sentto the engineer, the latter starts the engine, causing the main cable to be wound upon the drum and draft and applied to the ropes. This elevates the buckets out of the trench, and raises them until their pulleys automatically engage with the latches. The latches or brakes are also lifted automatically, and, the draft being continued, the cars are drawn along the railway until the train reaches the upper end of the framing. The motion of the engine is now reversed, the cable drawing the train backward, the tubs being all simultaneously dumped as they pass the stops. The backward motion of the train continues until the cars reach their first position over the excavation, when the train comes to a state of rest,- the end car automatically engaging with the catches, and the buckets being released from the catches and lowered into the excavation. As the excavation proceeds, the trestle-work may from time to time be drawn or advanced'along the line of the trench-opening.

By the construction and arrangement herein described it will be noted that the entire apparatus may be worked by the engineer or party in charge of the engine, the lifting of the tubs, the movement of the same with the car, the discharge of the contents, the close of the bottoms of the tubs, their return and lowering requiring no direct attendance or help.

to one of said trucks and connected with the rod U, and the stop 25, substantially as described.

2. In combination with the trestle-work or framing and cars supported and running there on, the wire connected, substantially as described, at one end with a stud or lever, and at the other end with a bell, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination with the trestle-work or framing and cars supported thereon, the wire 0 and an indicator or register for noting trips, substantially as set forth.

4. In an excavating apparatus comprising a trestle or elevated railway, a train of cars or trucks drawn thereon, and buckets suspended from and supported by said cars or trucks, the combination, with the bucket supporting and conveying truck, of an independent cable for each truck and its bucket, and a supplemental truck constructed and adapted to prevent sagging of the cables, substantially as described.

5. The supplementary truck Q, provided with a cable-gripping device or clamp, in combination with devices for automatically actuating said clamp to cause it to grasp or release the cables, substantially as shown and described.

6. The rope or cable holding clamp, in combination with the bucket-cable and the car or truck, substantially as described and shown.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing we have hereunto set our hands this 29th day of March, 1883.

JOSEPH M. SHUTE. LORENZO M. SHUTE.

Witnesses:

Tnos. A. CONNOLLY, n. H. POWELL. 

